Tasnim - Iran coach Carlos Queiroz said that three-time champion has only played two friendly matches since the 2014 FIFA World Cup but is looking forward to Sunday’s AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015 Group C opener against Bahrain.

Iran defeated Iraq 1-0 in Sydney on Sunday following on from its victory against Korea Republic by the same scoreline in Tehran in November.

“We are looking forward to playing this game against Bahrain, but now it is time to rest and train and prepare ourselves mentally,” former Real Madrid coach told the-afc.com.

“We have not improved since the World Cup. It is worse now because we have not had the preparation we should have.

“When you gamble too much with bad preparation, your chances are not as high as before,” he added.